April 9, 1997 - 7:45 AM - County Board of Commissioners Meeting Minutes

April 9, 1997The Johnston County Board of Commissioners resumed regular session Tuesday, April 9, 1997, at745 oclock am in the Commissioners Room, Johnston County Courthouse Annex, Smithfield, NorthCarolina, with the following membersPresent Norman C Denning, Chairman, James W Cash, Vice Chairman, Jerry F Wood,DDS, Eleanor N Creech, Cookie Pope, Thomas M Moore and James H Langdon, JrAbsent NoneAlso Present Richard B Self, County Manager, and Joyce H Ennis, Clerk to the BoardThe Chairman called the meeting to order and the following business was transacted1 Discussion on Sewer FeesTim Broome, Engineer, presented a user cost analysis for wastewater showing several scenarios witha lower capacity charge than the current 10 per gallon, and surcharge amounts to make up the differencefor the needed revenue He explained his figures pertained to the capacity fee only, not the 10,000 peracre fee charged commercial users outside the towns and ETJ areas, which is for the NC 42 sewer linedebtCommissioner Cookie Pope stated she would like to see the acreage fee included in the figures, andnoted the County must do something to get the burden off commercial growth Commissioner James HLangdon, Jr agreed stating that business generates money that benefits everyone The fees, in his opinion,must be as low as possible so that growth will not be prohibitedFollowing further discussion, Commissioner Jerry F Wood suggested the County defer collectionof sewer fees in the towns and ETJ areas until the County can do a thorough analysis He warned againstmaking a hasty decisionIn discussion, it was determined that any suspension in collection of fees should include the entireCounty, and those persons accessing the system during this period of time should clearly understand thatthey will be charged whatever fee the Board agrees upon, even if no change is madeMotionFollowing further discussion, Commissioner Jerry F Wood moved the Board suspend the collectionof industrial and commercial sewer fees under discussion in Johnston County until the staff can do athorough analysis; and after the Board adopts a fair fee, those who have accessed the sewer system in theinterim shall be billed the appropriate fee, and staff is instructed to issue letters granting a reasonable andjustified sewer allocation, based upon building permits Commissioner James H Langdon, Jr secondedthe motionFurther DiscussionLinwood Parker, Town Councilman of Four Oaks, stressed the seriousness of this problem and theimpact it would have on the towns He stated, in his opinion, the Town of Four Oaks should not have topay for commercial growth in other parts of the CountyVote on the MotionThe Chairman called for a vote on Commissioner Woods motion, which was seconded byCommissioner Langdon The motion carried by unanimous voteThe Board instructed the County Manager to work with the engineers and come up with somepossible solutions, as soon as possible They also asked that the mayors and interested parties be notifiedof the action taken by the Board2 Report on Meeting with Wildlife Commissioner Concerning Environmental IssuesCounty Manager, Richard Self, reported he and Tim Broome, as well as several staff members, metwith the Wildlife Commission concerning some environmental issues which have been raised in relationto the Countys application for an EDA Grant Mr Self explained the meeting went very well, and in hisopinion, the problems can be solved with some modification to the Countys ordinance concerning theSwift Creek areaMr Broome agreed stating the County will probably need to adopt a policy and regulations toprotect the Swift Creek area and agree to enforce the ordinanceThere being no further comments, Chairman Thomas M Moore moved the Board adjournCommissioner Cookie Pope seconded the motion, which carried by unanimous voteNorman C Denning, ChairmanJoyce K Ennis, Clerk•DetailsAnnotationsEntry PropertiesModified11192013 115322 AMCreated422003 73826 AMTemplateMinutesFieldsMinutes - TypeRecessedMinutes - Date491997Book20